Implications of 'Israel' Banning Arab Candidates for Knesset, Deporting Martyrs' Families .

The Israeli Occupation has crossed a dangerous line, not only restricting the rights of Palestinians in the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories (48 Palestinians) but also silencing their solidarity with Gaza. Now, those who dare protest against genocide or express support for their loved ones on social media face prosecution.

Under the control of the religious Zionist movement, the Israeli government passed three new laws to prevent Palestinians from running for Knesset, in response to Palestinian lawmakers' criticism of the Israeli massacres in Gaza. The laws also allow for the deportation of families of Palestinian resistance fighters who carried out martyrdom operations in response to Israeli crimes, and the dismissal of Arab teachers who show sympathy for Gaza and the Palestinian Resistance.

These new laws are aimed at erasing the remaining Palestinian population of the Nakba of 1948, when Israeli and British gangs killed and displaced Palestinians, to finally seize their land and property. The laws further push the Israeli Occupation to become an apartheid state.

Details of the Laws

More than a year after the Israeli aggression on Gaza following Operation al-Aqsa Flood on October 7, 2023, the policies of repression and restriction carried out by the Israeli Occupation state against Palestinian citizens inside “Israel” have intensified. These policies have become more frequent and varied.

The Israeli authorities have implemented repression against all forms of freedom of expression within Palestinian territories, whether in anti-war protests, on social media, in universities, or in trade unions.

They even launched an unprecedented campaign of arrests targeting Arabs holding Israeli citizenship or residing in the West Bank and Jerusalem, based on posts that were interpreted as “supporting Gaza.”

Zionist institutions, such as universities, have also sought to track and monitor any actions by Arabs perceived as “incitement” or “affiliation with a terrorist organization,” resulting in the dismissal of students and teachers, as well as the prosecution of some.

The first law approved by the Knesset on October 30, 2024, expands the ban on any Palestinian running for Knesset elections, solely based on their sympathy for “one event” or “one operation.” A candidate can be disqualified for expressing a single statement that supports “terrorism,” which in this context refers to the Palestinian Resistance or solidarity with the suffering of Gaza’s people amid the ongoing Israeli genocide.

The second law, passed by the Knesset on November 4, 2024, allows the dismissal of Arab teachers without prior warning if they express a political stance. The Israeli Minister of Education is granted the authority to take swift actions without prior notice, under the pretext that a teacher or school “aligns with a terrorist organization.” This measure aims to intimidate and silence Palestinian teachers in the 1948 territories and cut off funding to their schools.

This discriminatory law targeting Arab schools and teachers was supported by 55 Knesset members, with 45 opposing it.

The original draft of the law required the Ministry of Education to submit an annual list of teacher identification numbers in “Israel” and occupied Jerusalem to the Shin Bet security service, but this clause was removed following objections from professional bodies and the Shin Bet itself.

The third law, approved by the Knesset Committee on November 5, 2024, calls for the “expulsion of the families of armed operatives [martyrs] who carry out attacks against Israeli targets, if they had prior knowledge of the plan or glorified and supported the operation after its execution.” This law was passed by the Knesset on November 7, 2024, and mandates the final expulsion of the families of those who carry out martyrdom operations against Israeli targets to Gaza or another designated location, depending on the circumstances.

This is in case “it is proven that a family member of the operative knew in advance of the attack and failed to take all necessary steps to prevent it.” The legislation was passed with the support of 61 Knesset members, while 41 voted against it.

Under the bill, the Interior Minister may order the expulsion of a family member if they “had prior knowledge of the plan to commit a terrorist act, expressed solidarity with the terrorist act, or praised, admired, or encouraged the terrorist act.”

Expulsion would be to outside of “Israel” and the territories occupied in 1967 for a period of seven years if the operative was an “Israeli citizen,” or ten years if they were a resident of the occupied territories.

Insane Arrests

The first law, which prevents Arabs from running for Knesset membership, aims to expand the ban on 48’ Palestinians from participating in Knesset elections, according to Palestinian human rights organizations.

The current law prohibits anyone who “clearly and systematically supports armed struggle [the Palestinian Resistance] by any state or terrorist organization against Israel” from running.

However, the amended law approved by the Knesset broadens the scope of disqualification, making alignment with a single “event” or “operation” against “Israel” sufficient grounds for exclusion, without requiring “repeated statements.”

As for the law targeting the expulsion of families of martyrs, introduced by Knesset member Hanoch Milwidsky of the Likud party, alongside other lawmakers, it not only discusses the expulsion of the parents of those who carried out “attacks” but also all family members, including spouses, children, and siblings.

In the law concerning the dismissal of Arab teachers, Knesset member Zvika Fogel from the far-right Otzma Yehudit party proposed another bill, allowing police investigators to raid the computers and mobile devices of 48’ Palestinians, copy materials without their knowledge, and use this content to convict them in court.

Since Operation al-Aqsa Flood, the Israeli Occupation authorities have sought to arrest Palestinian young men and women with Israeli citizenship (48’ Palestinians) or residents of occupied Jerusalem and the West Bank, simply for expressing sympathy with Gaza.

Random, insane arrests have taken place, such as that of a young woman who posted a picture while cooking “shakshuka” on October 8, (one day after Operation al-Aqsa Flood) under the pretext of celebrating Hamas’s operation. 

Bayan al-Khateeb, 23, added the popular egg-and-tomato dish to Instagram Stories with a soundtrack that’s been widely used on posts about cooking successes. “Today we eat victory shakshuka,” she wrote on the clip of a bubbling skillet.

“Everybody knows I’m a bad cook,” she explained. “And on the 8th of October, I succeeded to make a shakshuka. What I meant was it was a victory in cooking, not a victory happening in the country.”

Khateeb was suspended from university pending an investigation, and arrested two weeks later. She described being held in a cell that was designed for four people but had nine. 

“All were there for social media cases. She said she was strip-searched three times throughout her detention, and was woken up every hour to be counted.

Other women and men who posted “Good morning Gaza” on social media were also imprisoned.

Additional arrests occurred of Palestinians in “Israel,” occupied Jerusalem, and the West Bank, for posting Quranic verses or ordinary prayers, which the Israeli Occupation interpreted as “prayers for Gaza's people.”

The situation even reached the point of Israeli extremist Minister of Public Security Itamar Ben-Gvir ordering the arrest of the Palestinian teacher (holding Israeli citizenship), Intisar Hijazi, due to a TikTok video of her dancing to a children's song with her students. She was accused of celebrating Operation al-Aqsa Flood, which sparked widespread ridicule.

Israeli universities also filed disciplinary charges against around 160 Arab students for social media posts.

When rights groups questioned why Israeli universities ignored racist posts by Jewish students, they were bluntly told: that only “terror supporters”—meaning Arab students backing Gaza—face prosecution.

Official Apartheid

According to statements from Arab organizations in the occupied territories, these laws have been described as “official Zionist apartheid.”

Adalah Center for Rights and Freedoms described these new legislations as a new wave of repressive and racist legislation that strengthens the apartheid system.

Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights, based in “Nazareth,” issued a statement stating that the law on “deporting the families of those who carried out operations against Israel” fuels Israeli racist rhetoric against Palestinians and Arabs.

Attorney Hadeel Abu Salih said the purpose of the law to “expel the families of those who carried out armed operations” is to “deepen apartheid and the policy of segregation.”

On November 3, 2024, she told Arab 48 that the period for expelling families of martyrs from Israel had been set to range between 5 to 15 years, depending on the case.

Regarding whether the law would apply to Palestinians inside “Israel,” the attorney said the motivations of the lawmakers who introduced the law aim to make the citizenship or residency of Palestinians in the Israeli Occupation state “conditional.”

She highlighted that this policy primarily targets residents of occupied Jerusalem but, under the law's provisions, it could also be enforced against Palestinians with Israeli citizenship living within “Israel.”

The law could also apply to residents of the West Bank. However, if enforced in the occupied territories, it would be considered a "war crime" under international law.

The general director of Adalah Center, attorney Hassan Jabareen, also described the laws preventing Arabs from running for the Knesset as part of the Israeli right-wing's ongoing campaign against Arab Knesset members, which began in 2000. This campaign is part of a broader political clampdown to isolate them.

Jabareen confirmed that these laws issued by “Israel” are “racist and place Jews in a superior position.”

In an interview with Arab 48 on October 30, 2024, he said Arab voting represents a problem and obstacle for the Zionist right. 

“For Benjamin Netanyahu to succeed and form a right-wing Likud government with settlers, it is necessary to exclude Arabs from the Knesset.”

“The law would make it easier to disqualify Arab Knesset members or lists, replacing current Supreme Court rulings that block such actions, under the pretext of not recognizing Israel as a Jewish democratic state or supporting "armed struggle,” he added.

“Israel treats us as enemies [..], something we have long known, but now it is official, and these same policies are beyond the law.”

The attorney discussed other goals behind these legislations, such as tightening restrictions on the Palestinian community in 1948 occupied territories, including expanding crimes related to freedom of expression. Another key issue is undermining the Arab education system by granting the Ministry of Education broad powers to dismiss Arab teachers and cut funding from schools accused of “supporting terrorism.”

The laws also violate the rights of Palestinian children by stripping their protection and treating them as adults. Children as young as 12 could face imprisonment if convicted of “alleged terrorist offenses.”

Still, the new legislation cuts social welfare benefits for parents of children convicted of “security violations” and imposes harsh economic sanctions on families, many of whom are already suffering from poverty and marginalization. These laws essentially reinstate “collective punishment” on the Palestinian community in the occupied territories under the guise of counterterrorism, resurrecting a previous law that the Israeli Supreme Court had struck down in 2021.

Although there were few protests from Palestinians in the 1948 occupied territories against the Israeli genocide or displacement of Gaza's residents, the response this time has been weaker compared to May 2021, when they supported Hamas and resisted Zionist groups. This time, the Israeli Occupation has responded with greater violence, extending from arrests and expulsions from villages to legal persecutions, dismissals from jobs and universities, threats of revoking citizenship, and physical assaults, including the burning of their properties.

The Washington Post reported in November, 2023, that Palestinian citizens with Israeli nationality have faced suppression of free expression since October 7, 2023. The article also discussed a new law “Israel” seeks to implement, allowing the revocation of Israeli citizenship for Palestinians convicted of expressing political opinions.

According to Mossawa Center, at least 350 Palestinians with Israeli passports have been summoned for hearings at their workplaces, and 120 university students have faced disciplinary hearings. Human rights groups, as cited in The Post, predict significant consequences for freedom of expression, as even expressing solidarity with Palestinians could lead to criminalization in some cases.

In November 2023, prominent Palestinian humanitarian lawyer Jawad Boulos told CNN the imprisonment of Palestinians, especially those who have not committed crimes, has been an important tool used by “Israel” in “maintaining the occupation of Palestinians.”

He said that ever since “Israel” withdrew from the Gaza Strip in 2005, Israeli authorities have made a “concerted effort” to silence Palestinians in the West Bank by imprisoning them.

Boulos said that despite the odds being stacked against his clients in a court system “not built to establish justice for the Palestinians,” some prisoners were freed in the past. That, he said, is no longer an option.

“When arrests are done in this way [..] it’s unfathomable,” he told CNN.

‘Judicial Coup’

Hebrew newspapers, opposing the current right-wing coalition government led by Netanyahu, have characterized these laws as an attempt to stage a “judicial coup.” 

Haaretz, in particular, described the legislation to prevent Arabs from running for the Knesset as an excuse to exclude them and a part of “the judicial coup” Netanyahu seeks to implement, consolidating his control.

“Israel's far-right government hasn't neglected for a moment its plans for a judicial coup.”

The legislation “includes several dangerous changes, a few of which are meant to limit the power of the Supreme Court,” Haaretz noted on October 28.

“But the main change is to the provision making ‘support for armed struggle by a state or terrorist organization against Israel’ grounds for disqualification. The bill says that henceforth, even a single act or statement would suffice for disqualification, rather than requiring ongoing, recurrent action.”

“Make no mistake, the coalition isn't fighting terrorism, but Arabs. Even in the existing law, this provision is worded in a way that protects supporters of Jewish terror,” according to the Hebrew newspaper.

“Support for Jewish terrorism in the West Bank is not grounds for disqualification, on the ridiculous pretext that such terror isn't aimed against the State of Israel or Israeli citizens.”

Haaretz made it clear: “Expanding this provision would further clarify the fact that it is aimed against Arabs. And there's no doubt it would serve the coalition in its efforts to disqualify Arab candidates who have made ‘outrageous comments’ in the past.”